Herbal Turmeric,The Traditional Treatment of the Oral Lichen Planus

By Kyle J. Norton

Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a condition characterized by chronic inflammation, affecting the mucous membrane of the oral cavity.

The disease is caused by the abnormal reaction of the immune system that attacks and triggers the death of the basal cells of the oral epithelium.

Oral lichen planus can have different shapes an colors, including white, lacy patches, red, swollen tissues, or open sores.

Most common areas of oral cavity affected by oral lichen planus (OLP)  are inside of the cheeks, the gums, tongue, palate and the inner tissues of the lips.

Besides the aforementioned symptoms, patients with OLP may also experience symptoms of pain, burning sensation or pain, bleeding, and irritation with tooth brushing, inflammation of the gums (gingivitis).

In serious cases, OLP  can also affect the patients speaking, chewing or swallowing.

Conventionally, most cases of OLP are managed by pinpoint the allergens that trigger the immune attack accompanied by topical ointments or gels. Corticosteroids are the first line treatment with an aim to reduce inflammation and pain in patients with oral lichen planus.

Turmeric is a perennial plant in the genus Curcuma, belonging to the family Zingiberaceae, native to tropical South Asia.

The herb has been used in traditional medicine as anti-oxidant, hypoglycemic, colorant, antiseptic, wound healing agent, and to treat flatulence, bloating, and appetite loss, ulcers, eczema, inflammations, etc.

On finding a potential compound for the treatment of oral lichen planus (OLP), researchers launched a review to identify studies from the database of medical literature up to December 18, 2018.

4 trials assessed the comparative efficacy of topical curcumin vs. topical corticosteroids and 3 trials assessed the efficacy of oral curcumin vs. placebo were selected.

According to the results, topical curcumin showed to reduce pain, burning, and clinical manifestations of OLP versus baseline, effects similar or inferior to those of topical corticosteroids.

Interestingly, oral curcumin trials exerted no significant benefits of curcumin therapy versus placebo but there were some potential benefits and reasonable safety in an observational extension study.

In order to reveal more information about the effect of curcumin on OLP, researchers at Zhejiang University once again reviewed the published literature by searching PubMed, EMBASE, EBSCO, and Cochrane Library.

The search identified 9 studies which met the inclusion criteria, including six randomized, double-blind clinical trials; two pilot clinical trials; and one case report.

Based on the results of a total of 259 OLP patients included in the systematic review, researchers found that

* 7 studies showed statistically significant differences in pain severity and clinical appearance of oral lesions after treatment with curcumin compared to baseline.

* 3 controlled clinical trials compared to corticosteroids; curcumin exerted a similar efficacy in pain severity and clinical appearance of oral lesions.

Dr. Lv KJ, the lead scientist wrote, "Curcumin is a safe treatment and can be used as an adjunct in combination with corticosteroids to reduce pain, burning sensations, and the clinical appearance of oral lesions in OLP patients".

Taken altogether,  turmeric process a main ingredient of curcumin may be considered a supplement for the treatment of oral lichen planus, pending to the confirmation of the larger sample size and multicenter human study.

Intake of turmeric in the form of supplement should be taken with extreme care to prevent overdose acute liver toxicity.

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Author Biography
Kyle J. Norton (Scholar, Master of Nutrition, All right reserved)
Health article writer and researcher; Over 10.000 articles and research papers have been written and published online, including worldwide health, ezine articles, article base, health blogs, self-growth, best before it's news, the karate GB daily, etc.,.
Named TOP 50 MEDICAL ESSAYS FOR ARTISTS & AUTHORS TO READ by Disilgold.com Named 50 of the best health Tweeters Canada - Huffington Post
Nominated for shorty award over last 4 years
Some articles have been used as references in medical research, such as international journal Pharma and Bioscience, ISSN 0975-6299.

Sources
(1) Curcumin, a turmeric extract, for oral lichen planus: A systematic review by White CM1,2, Chamberlin K1,3, Eisenberg E. (PubMed)
(2) Clinical safety and efficacy of curcumin use for oral lichen planus: a systematic review by Lv KJ1, Chen TC2, Wang GH1, Yao YN1, Yao H. (PubMed)